


set my alarm, turn on my charm

by inflouence



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Car Accidents, Humor, I might write it, Love/Hate, M/M, Making Out, Minor Violence, Resolved Sexual Tension, Sexual Tension, Sidekicks, SuperHero!Zayn, Superhero!Louis, corny superhero names, kind of creepy at points, liam is my favorite character in this fic okay i want a spinoff, niall and harry are really irrelevant, sidekick!liam, sorry - Freeform, stay tuned
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-26
Updated: 2017-12-26
Packaged: 2019-02-21 22:08:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,923
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13153005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inflouence/pseuds/inflouence
Summary: "Please, if you’re gonna try to rob some helpless college girls, don’t do it with a superhero around.” Nightlock rolled his eyes. “Or, one and a half.”“Now you know I am more superhero then you’ll ever be.” Louis folded his hands over the gun and watched as it turned into ash. He dropped the remnants on the asphalt. “I’m afraid I have to go. This was fun.”Just as he turned to speed off, Louis heard Nightlock clearing his throat. “Um,” he voiced, “Would you like to go to dinner sometime?”Louis snorted. “What, with a half a hero?” He turned his head slightly once more with a small smile and then dashed.or, the 5 times louis (aka, lord london) encounters his fellow superhero nightlock and the 1 time it's someone else.





	set my alarm, turn on my charm

**Author's Note:**

> this was inspired by the prompt "wait, my hero's secret identity is...you? to be honest, i'd always kind of hoped" but something happened and now this is not that. loosely, though, it could be if you squint.
> 
> also this is a christmas present for grace!! ily queen!!!
> 
> title is from Queen - Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy ;) see the end notes for an explanation if you're confused.

“So, do you?”

Louis looked up from the book he had previously been buried deep in. He put down his pencil on the table carefully so it wouldn’t roll away just as he responded, “Excuse me?”

Liam gave him a funny look. “Have an alter ego.”

Louis sputtered. He dropped the book on the table with a loud thump, leaned back in his seat, held himself steady with a rough grip on the table’s edge. “Why the hell would you ask me that?”

“Just wondering.” Liam sent Louis a wink and then returned to his books. Okay. So that was weird, right? Like, Louis’ friend since childhood just asked him a question he’d never had any intention of asking before. It’s not like he knew or _could_ know, Louis thought he kept it all pretty secret. And even if he did know, well, he’d probably come up with a better way of getting it out of Louis than- 

“Don’t look now, but there goes Zayn at two o’clock-”

Louis immediately turned his head to the side to look.

“I told you not to look!”

And oh. Liam was right, there he was, standing in all of his stupid-ass-fucking-glory, with that stupid-ass-fucking-long hair that he refused to cut but which actually looked good on him, along with that stupid-ass-fucking-red shirt and did Louis even _have_ to mention those stupid-ass-fucking-glasses?

“Hey, Louis!” And there he was, calling his name. Louis could never get a break. So instead he turned around and tried to ignore that stupid-ass-fucking-voice, too.

Footsteps were coming closer. Liam gave Louis the _look_ , the one that said everything he needed to say without having to even say a single word and Louis gave him the _look look_ and then there was the _look look look_ and-

“If you stare any harder next time I’m really gonna think you’re in love with me.” Zayn gave the boys a shit-eating grin and dropped his stuff beside Louis, inviting himself to the table like the asshole he was and _of course_ Liam wasn’t doing anything to stop it. Of course Liam was offering Zayn some chips. Louis really needed to find some new friends.

Louis ended up just grumbling under his breath while Zayn made himself comfortable. Liam and Zayn engaged themselves in healthy conversation about their Calculus class and derivatives or whatever the hell they did in that God-awful place and Louis just continued reading the book he had been assigned in his Literature course.

After some time, Zayn stood up again.

“Oh thank God, you’re finally leaving!” Louis let out a breath of relief.

“Actually, I’m hungry. You guys want anything?”

“No,” Louis said quickly at the same time that Liam said, “ _Fuck_ yes.”

Zayn sent another stupid-ass-fucking-smile and then left the library. As soon as the door closed behind him Liam threw his notebook at Louis’ face. Louis quickly grabbed it out of the air before it could actually _reach_ his face though but, well, it’s the thought that counts.

“What the hell is wrong with you, dude?” Liam practically yelled. The librarian practically told him to shut the fuck up. “Zayn is, like, the nicest person at this school. And he’s hot. And he wears _glasses_.”

“You have a girlfriend,” Louis pointed out.

“And I can still appreciate how _fine_ someone is.”

“You’re drooling.” Louis crossed his arms and huffed. “You know what he did to me.”

Liam smacked Louis’ arm, making the latter yelp. “It wasn’t his fault, and you know that.”

“I nearly died.” And it was true. Some superheroes have really intricate background stories on how they came to be. Louis’ was a little less complicated. Once, a couple of years back, he and Zayn had been close. And then there had been the accident that had changed his life forever. Louis had been stuck, trapped under the car, in a place anyone with half a brain refused to visit for obvious mysterious reasons. He had presumed that Zayn had left him for dead, which wasn’t very far from the truth. Somewhere along the way Louis lifted the car off of himself and there he was, superhuman. (The story also had many gaps. Those he kept to himself).

So ever since then, Louis could not stand Zayn. Yes, he’d gained supernatural strength among other powers from the accident and _yeah_ that was a good thing, but he just could not manage to get over the fact that Zayn had left him there to rot. What if the supernatural thing hadn’t happened and Louis was just dead? What would Zayn do then?

“Have you even talked to him about that night?” And yeah, Liam couldn’t know. Sure this was his best friend, but Louis would rather just go around saving people and mind his business than have other people get involved that didn’t need to be. Which brings us back to the whole ‘alter ego’ question and why he was so shocked by it in the first place.

“No,” Louis answered, “And I’m gonna keep it like that.”

Liam didn’t try to pry any more information after that. The two went back to their studies and the only sounds were whispers from other patrons and the ticking of the clock. After some time Louis couldn’t help but notice that Zayn had not returned. It was eating at him, unfortunately, and the more he tried to push the nasty feeling down the more it bubbled up.

So finally Louis just pushed himself away from the desk. “I’m gonna, uh, go,” he muttered.

Liam cocked an eyebrow at him. “Uh, okay?”

Louis stood up quickly and rushed away from the desk. He grabbed his bag and left the library. After a couple of years of this, he’d pretty much mastered the whole transforming-into-your-alter-ego thing. While running towards the parking lot, he managed to change into his whole supersuit, mask included, and scan the premises for any sign of struggle. Yeah, he was just that good.

“Stupid Zayn, making me leave the library to look for him,” Louis couldn’t help mumbling. He heard a small sound and suddenly stopped. It was dark, and the parking lot only had a couple of cars in it. Zayn’s was still there, his shiny black Chevy Impala. Louis peered inside but didn’t see anything. When he turned again, he heard a faint grunt from the distance. Louis began running once more to the other end of the parking lot. His senses began tuning to his surroundings. With extreme grace and flare, he flipped his body through the air and onto some poor person’s minivan and then knelt in his familiar position.

Before him, there was a clear altercation going on. A dark shadowy figure was trying to fend off three men. The men were throwing punches left and right but the figure was dodging every single one. He stuck out his leg to trip one of the guys while grabbing another one and hoisting him up and over himself just to throw him against another car. The third one charged at him but the man merely moved to the side so he’d join the other two.

“I don’t need your help, Lord London,” the figure voiced as he straightened up. “I tell you this every time.”

Louis noticed just in time as one of the men produced a gun and pointed it towards the figure. He stood up, flipped off of the car, and reached the ground of the parking lot. He extended his arm and the gun flew to his hand. He turned back to the other boy with a smug look on his face, spinning the gun.

“You don’t need my help, huh?” He grinned. “Pride goes before a fall, Nightlock.”

Nightlock sent Louis a nasty look and then turned to his three combatants. The sound of sirens could be heard not too far off. “Please, if you’re gonna try to rob some helpless college girls, don’t do it with a superhero around.” He rolled his eyes. “Or, one and a half.”

“Now you _know_ I am more superhero then you’ll ever be.” Louis folded his hands over the gun and watched as it turned into ash. He dropped the remnants on the asphalt. “I’m afraid I have to go. This was fun.”

Just as he turned to speed off, Louis heard Nightlock clearing his throat. “Um,” he voiced, “Would you like to go to dinner sometime?”

Louis snorted. “What, with a half a hero?” He turned his head slightly once more with a small smile and then dashed.

Liam was still in the library practicing math problems when Louis returned, back in his usual clothing. There was no talk about where Louis had been and of course Louis was grateful for that.

A couple of minutes later, Zayn re-entered with a box in his hand. “I got pizza!”

Louis groaned.

* * *

 The second time, there was a party.

Man, did Louis hate high school parties. Everything was ridiculously hot and sweaty and the place always got trashed. Not to mention that everyone was always so sex-crazed that he could never find anywhere to get some peace of mind.

“Look, you won’t even have to protect me,” Liam was near-begging. “I’m buff, I’m skilled. You _know_ I box. I can back you up in a fight like no one else.”

Louis rolled his eyes and swirled the disgusting drink in his cup. “For the last time, Liam, I don’t need a sidekick.”

Oh yeah. Somewhere between his last two conquests, Liam had discovered Louis’ little secret and was now dying to be a sidekick. Louis clearly didn’t need a sidekick. Just seeing Nightlock at every fight was enough to get him going, he didn’t need another person there ruining his flow.

“Oh, c’mon, Lou, just think of it.” Liam dramatically moved his hands in the air as if someone was displaying his name in lights. “Prince London. We’d be all the rage. Lord and Prince. Or maybe Duke London.” Louis gave him a look as if he were crazy. “Okay, I’ll even take Lady London. Y’know, the element of surprise.”

Liam continued droning on and Louis had to tune him out at ‘Czar London’. He downed his drink and tried to be a little decent and drop the empty cup in the trash. The music was also trash but it was pulling him in, some remix of a Sam Smith song with lots of bass and unnecessary electronic additions. He grabbed Liam and tugged him towards the dance floor, using a little bit of strength from within him because everyone knew that there was no way Louis could _pull_ Liam without it and just to shut him up he started dancing.

Liam was shocked but Louis placed his hands on the boy’s hips and moved his own to the beat of the song. Now Liam was laughing and he jumped to the beat also. He leaned closer to Louis and whispered into his neck, “So is that a no to Emperor London? I quite liked that one.”

Louis pulled back. “It’s a hard no.”

Liam laughed even harder. Louis felt the rumbling of his chest beneath his hands and grinned. All of a sudden, he didn’t feel like dancing anymore. He patted Liam, signalling that he was leaving, and Liam nodded.

“I’ll be upstairs,” he yelled above the music.

Upstairs he went, taking the steps slowly. He reached the second level of the host’s house and pushed his way into a room that was surprisingly empty. It looked like a guest room because there was a bathroom attached and no personality to the room at all. The tall windows were open. Louis shivered and went to close them. However, when he stepped onto the balcony he got another one of those _feelings_. His ears tuned to loud footsteps thumping down the hallway.

The door to the room opened. Louis swiveled around.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” the boy frowned. He had a wild look on his eyes and his face was etched with worry. “I-I just thought-”

“What’s wrong?” Louis stepped away from the edge of the balcony.

“You haven’t seen Niall around, have you?” The boy ran a shaky hand through his hair. “He went out to the back to get more ice, but I haven’t seen him since.”

Louis frowned too, “No, I haven’t.” He recognized this boy as Harry, the hose of the party. Louis immediately felt bad. “I’ll keep an eye out for him.”

Harry instantly looked grateful. He gave Louis more details before leaving the room and shutting the door. Louis turned back to the balcony and without a second thought jumped down. He had not come prepared to the party with his suit but he was praying that the neighbors weren’t currently looking outside of their windows and reporting to the police a seventeen year old boy high on drugs jumping from two-story balconies.

Louis went to the back of the house where Harry had said Niall was last seen. He crouched down and his fingers picked up a strand of brown hair. He twisted it in the moonlight and then put it back down. Louis stood up and could definitely see signs of a struggle. He threw open the ice box but found it empty.

“Weird,” he mumbled.

“What? That there isn’t a body inside?”

Louis looked up. On one of the ledge’s of the house was none other than Nightlock, leaning against the side of a window, staring down. Louis felt a tingling going up his spine and tried to shake himself out of it.

“I’m not a damsel and I’m not in distress, if that’s what you’re hanging around for,” he replied nonchalantly.

“No, I’m here to find the _real_ damsel.” Nightlock dropped onto the icebox and held his hand out to Louis. “If you want to find him, you’re gonna need my help.”

For a split second, Louis wondered if Nightlock knew that he was offering his hand to Lord London. The thought was crazy. There was no way he could know - okay, so maybe Liam had discovered it, and maybe a couple of other people, but not _Nightlock_ . Just as every superhero had a backstory, every one of them had an arch nemesis, except Nightlock wasn’t an enemy, per se. He was just someone that would always show up whenever Louis was fighting off bad guys and vice versa. They were just _always_ together and it got annoying but Louis knew for a fact that he didn’t hate Nightlock. The guy had such charm, it was ridiculous. And if there was a little more there than just false disdain, well, that was something that could be dealt with later.

“Okay,” Louis said finally, and took Nightlock’s hand. It was warm and soft despite being covered by a suit and the latter pulled Louis onto the roof. He pointed to a tree off in the distance, one very tall and obvious to spot.

“You see that?”

Louis nodded.

“Something tells me that Niall’s disappearance has something to do with it.”

Louis snapped his head to the side. “How do you know Niall?”

Nightlock eyed him warily, “Well, why the hell do you think I’m here?”

The brunette bit his lip and peered at the tree. He knew all about it, all about where it was located. His mind flashed back to two years back, to a car crushing his body, to spirits and demons and-

“I don’t think he’s there yet, though,” Nightlock continued. He pulled Louis further up the roof until they were both at the very top of the house. “But something’s telling me that he’s getting there.”

Nightlock was standing directly behind Louis, his hand resting on Louis’ shoulder. Louis could feel his heart trying to escape his chest. Nightlock had _no_ idea; he must have thought Louis was just some helpless party-goer, not another superhero with superpowers that debated removing his mask to kiss him every time they crossed paths (which was everytime).

“Louis?” A voice called from inside. Nightlock let out a breath as Louis looked down the roof. The voice, belonging to Liam, exited the back door and peered around. “Louis, you out here?”

When Louis turned back, Nightlock had vanished into the - well, night. Louis snorted. Of course. The guy hadn’t even offered to help him down the roof. You can’t just _assume_ someone has the ability to do that (even though Louis did).

Louis jumped down from the roof and landed directly in front of Liam, scaring him senseless. Louis giggled and Liam yelped, “What the hell were you even _doing_ up there?!”

* * *

The third time was after the party.

Liam was going on and on about how cruel it is to make your future sidekick shit his pants and Louis was making several attempts to explain why having a sidekick was such a _horrible_ idea. 

“I’ll overshadow you,” he whined. He waited for Liam to unlock his car door and then slid into the passenger seat while Liam got into the driver’s side. “We’ll go places and the bad guy will go ‘Oh look, it’s Lord London’ and never ‘Oh look, it’s Lord London _and_ whatever stupid name you adopt’.”

“I decided on Boy Superior,” Liam offered.

Louis ran a frustrated hand down his face. “That _doesn’t_ -” He paused. “Actually, that’s not that bad.”

“This is why you need a sidekick,” Liam singsonged. He started the car and pulled out his phone, scanning through his notifications. Louis made a sound of disapproval but Liam just held a hand up in his face.

Then Liam’s face immediately changed, puppy eyes replacing the normal ones and his mouth pouting slightly. “Can we give Zayn a ride?”

“Can we - can _we_ give _Zayn_ a ride? Zayn!” Louis sputtered. “How about you just shove a telephone pole up my ass instead, why don’t you?”

“Oh, c’mon Louis, it’s my car.” Liam rolled his eyes at the other boy. “And plus, with the way you act sometimes I think you’d rather have Zayn’s-”

“Finish that sentence and I’ll go get a fucking telephone pole,” Louis grumbled. He crossed his arms defiantly. “You know I’ll do it, too. Superpowers.”

Liam muttered something obscene under his breath that Louis chose to ignore although he’d heard it loud and clear. The two waited in utter silence for a couple of minutes before the back door opened and Zayn entered the car wearing his stupid-ass-fucking glasses with a stupid-ass-fucking flannel over a stupid-ass-fucking shirt.

“Louis, I can practically hear you checking me out from back here.” There he went. “Thanks for the ride, by the way, Li.”

“You’re welcome,” Liam responded, way too chipper, just as Louis snorted, “ _Li_.”

Zayn smiled at the two boys through the rearview mirror. The car pulled out of the driveway of Harry’s house and began making its way to Zayn’s. Liam took the opportunity to turn on some music so it played softly in the background. No one made any move to start conversation. Finally, Zayn shifted in his seat and began fiddling with his seatbelt.

“Did you guys know Niall went missing?” he asked quietly.

Louis remembered Niall because he’d always be _laughing_. He and Liam would walk past the table where the brunette sat at lunch and the kid would be nearly rolling of laughter. Louis thought back to his episode with Nightlock on the roof and the tree in the distance and suddenly got upset.

“What the hell do you know about Niall?” he responded accusingly.

Zayn had the nerve to look offended. “We share some classes. And if a classmate is in trouble, of course I’m going to care.”

Louis stopped for one second, let out a breath, count to ten and back and forth again. Finally, “You didn’t seem to care when I was trapped under a car in the middle of nowhere.” Nope. Didn’t work.

Liam began tapping his fingers nervously on the steering wheel as he stopped at a red light. “Lou,” he whispered.

“Excuse me?” Zayn blinked slowly.

“I _said_ ,” Louis turned in his seat to look directly into bright brown eyes. “You didn’t seem to care about your classmate, better yet your best friend, when I nearly died in _the_ accident.”

Zayn was searching Louis, scanning every inch of his face. The red light turned green but neither of the two boys moved. Liam emanated waves of fear of anxiety but they were ignored. Zayn finally turned his head in a very small shake of his head.

“Is that what you think happened?”

The words came out small. Louis squinted but turned around in his seat. Liam pulled up outside of Zayn’s house and unlocked the doors, muttering a goodbye and waiting until the boy got inside safely before he turned to Louis.

“I really want to punch you right now,” he growled.

“Do it then, bitch.” Louis then let out a frustrated cry. “Did you hear that? ‘Is that what you think happened’? That’s what I _know_ happened! Can you even _believe_ the guy?”

Liam didn’t respond. He turned his wheel and drove away from Zayn’s house. Louis looked over at the boy who was incredibly pissed at him. He didn’t understand. How come no one else could see, could _understand_ what he was going through? Why couldn’t they just tell why he couldn’t get over everything? It was more than just getting super powers, in actuality, it was more of a curse, and it was all Zayn’s fault, and no one else wanted to accept that.

Louis looked up at the moon. It was full and blaring down at him, loud, like he could almost hear it. The two reached a familiar road and a thought crossed his mind.

“Make a right at the next light,” he demanded.

“What?” Liam shook his head. “Louis, I’m taking you home.”

“Make a right!”

Liam grumbled but eventually obliged. Louis reached under the seat and pulled out his suit that Liam had kindly folded up for him. The perks of having your best friend know about your supernatural alter ego, he guessed (one of the very, _very_ few). He began switching clothes effortlessly while still being strapped up with the seatbelt.

“How the hell do you do that?” Liam complained. “ _Why_ are you doing it?”

Louis ignored his question, “Make a slight left.” He ran a hand through his disheveled hair and put on his mask. He caught his reflection in the moonlight. Something was pulling him here, had been dragging him to this area all day, and he had to find out what, or who.

“Stop here.” Louis said, clicking the button on his seatbelt to remove it. Liam slowly pulled up into the trees and put the car in park. He was obviously confused, and Louis’ actions weren’t making anything any better.

Louis opened the car door. “Stay here. Do not move. If I’m not back in an hour, assume I’m dead.”

“You’re joking, right?” Liam called, watching his friend’s retreating figure. “Oh my God, you’re not joking. Louis! Louis, get back here!”

Louis jumped up onto a tree branch and began swinging from tree to tree. With each swing, the moon was tugging him forward. He had to keep going. He _knew_ something was there for him, he was sure of it.

He swung and then lept once more and stopped on a thick branch. He grasped the trunk of the tree with his left hand and tried to slow his breath. Something was wrong. He sniffed the air and then clenched and unclenched his fists. Just as he was about to swing to the next tree, someone grabbed him and pushed him up against the trunk.

“What are you doing here?” they hissed.

Louis sighed, evidently frustrated. He pushed the person away. “I could ask you the same thing. 

Nightlock took a step closer. “You should know where we’re getting close to.” He cocked his head. “You looking for him too?”

Louis nodded. It went unspoken that yes, Louis knew where they were nearing. The tree was where it had all happened. It was where the car had been flipped over, where the organs in his body had begun to fail him, it was where he pleaded for mercy from anything that had been listening. It was where his life had changed forever.

Before he could say anything, Nightlock held his finger over his own lips to signal silence. He used his other finger to point below them. Louis looked down and saw a shivering boy. When his eyes zoomed in, he recognized the brunette hair and pale skin - Niall. Surrounding him was the real surprise - the same guys from other night that both Louis and Nightlock had prevented from attacking the college girls in the parking light of the library. Now, Louis was confused. This didn’t make sense. Were they not in jail?

The men were standing in a straight line, unwavering, watching Niall shake.

Louis could just make out their words:

“Please, don’t hurt me,” Niall was begging. “I’ll give you whatever you want. Money. Anything, whatever. I’ll give it. Just please, let me go.”

The men did not say anything, they only took a step closer.

Both Nightlock and Louis exchanged a look and then the two were landing on top of the men. Thrashing ensued as all three evil beings retaliated. Louis rolled over with one of them, proceeding to kick punch him repeatedly in the face once the guy was under him. The man grabbed his body and managed to get away but then Louis extended his arm and pulled him back. Louis kicked him in his shin and pinned him down and then -

“Nightlock,” he said slowly.

“Kind of busy here,” the other hero replied, punching the earth to make the other two topple over each other.

“Nightlock,” Louis repeated. “This guy has no face.”

“What-” Nightlock stopped and looked at the men like it was the first time. “You’re...you’re right.” 

Louis shook his head and punched the dude under him in his non-face. He definitely retaliated and felt something as he began thrashing again but there was no _emotion_ present. There was nothing present, really.

Louis stood up, flicking his finger and watching as the man was attached to the tree. Nightlock did the same with the other two. Niall was crumpled on the ground, breathing heavily.

Nightlock helped him stand up. “Are you okay?” He asked, concerned.

Niall shook his head. “I think I’m gonna throw up.”

Louis began walking closer to the three faceless men on the tree. He tried to think of their faces from the other night but his mind kept drawing blanks. He brought out his hand to turn their heads but everything was just one big, smooth surface of nothing.

He turned to the two behind him. “Get him out of here. I’ll deal with them.”

Nightlock frowned. “There’s no way I’m leaving you alone with these guys. C’mon, they’re freaky as fuck. We can do it together and _then_ get Niall back.”

“Uh, guys,” Niall started, looking queasy already.

Louis walked back to where they were. “I think I’ve got it, actually. Harry’s worried sick. Take the boy _home_.”

Nightlock was not backing down. “These guys are gonna keep coming back, I say let’s do it now.” He stepped closer to Louis and grabbed his waist. Louis’ heart was now going a mile a minute and he was positive Nightlock could hear it. Louis grabbed the other boy’s wrist but then Nightlock tugged him so that he was flush against his chest. “Now, Lord London,” he whispered.

“ _Guys_ ,” Niall screamed.

Louis and Nightlock turned around at the same time just in time to see one of the faceless men crumpling to the ground, twitching. Liam was behind him and holding his taser defiantly.

“I couldn’t wait an hour,” he spat. “And neither could Niall clearly, with all that sexual tension.”

* * *

The fourth time was at school. 

Study hall had commenced and Louis found himself aimlessly wandering the halls. Everytime he closed his eyes, he could feel the warmth of Nightlock’s body against his and could see eyes that burned through his soul. Louis couldn’t figure it out; it was like somebody somewhere was trying to tell him something. The light of the moon each night was making a path for him that he had to literally strain himself from following.

The sound of a piano could be heard drifting through the hallway. Louis tried to walk through it but it latched onto him like a parasite. He huffed and then was at the doorway of the music room, his eyes closed, only feeling the symphony.

Fingers were hitting the keys methodically, strategically, artistically. Louis found himself humming the tune although he was positive he’d never heard it before. His eyes shot open and drifted along the piano.

When Louis looked at Zayn, he didn’t feel the hatred that had been pulsing through his body for going on two years now. Instead, he felt a pull, a tug. He went forward and collapsed onto the bench beside him and began playing along. He hummed and lightly touched the keys with a feathery touch, playing the harmony while Zayn played the melody. And then, the two met in the middle and stared at each other.

The two refused to say anything. Louis instantly forgot whatever he had been playing and his fingers loomed over the keys like a giant question mark hanging in the air. He frowned and brought his hands back to his lap.

Everything was silent. A couple of steps in the hallway, but not a disturbance.

Zayn finally spoke, softly, like the background music of the keys.

“I don’t want you to hate me, Louis,” he sighed. “What happened that night...it isn’t something I’ve been able to explain to anyone. I didn’t abandon you, Louis.” He played something once more. Louis stared down at the piano and tried to remember what had even brought him there in the first place.

“You weren’t the only one that thought the other had left him to die,” Zayn continued. He hesitated. “You don’t see me holding a vendetta for it, though.”

Louis stood up abruptly and left the room. On his way out, he caught sight of a sheet of paper. When he picked it up, it was an intricate, almost photographic drawing of a beautiful Nightlock.

* * *

 The fifth time, something was wrong.

“This suit itches,” Liam complained, tugging at his crotch area with a wince on his face.

“Yeah, well, I don’t want to hear a single word about it. You’re the one who wanted to be a sidekick so bad.” Louis stuck his tongue out as the two walked through the dark night.

The moon was tapping Louis’ shoulders, forcing him to turn around every two seconds and observe his surroundings once more. Each time, Liam grew increasingly concerned. Louis tried to brush it off as nothing even though he knew it was definitely _something_.

“You’re not a werewolf, are you?” Liam asked as they walked to the clearing where Niall had been found. “Because if you are, I think that’s where I’m gonna have to draw the line.”

Louis sighed. “No, Liam, I’m not a damn werewolf. Do you even hear yourself sometimes?”

Liam held his hand to his chest in shock. “Oh, so you can gain superpowers magically one night and move things with your mind but being a werewolf is what’s absurd?”

Louis ignored the other boy. Instead of responding, he entered the clearing and brushed a hand against a rock where Niall’s blood had been spilled. He rubbed the rock between his hands and adjusted his eyes so he could see things that the naked eye couldn’t. When he peered closer, there was something clearly there that he’d been missing previously. After adjusting, he saw the rings forming a target and dropped the rock like it had burned him.

“Louis?” Liam stepped closer. “What is it?”

“It’s nothing,” he said quickly. “Let’s keep going.”

As much as Louis hated the idea of having a sidekick, Liam really wasn’t all that bad. He shut up sometimes and asked questions at other times but he seemed to have _some_ clue of what he was doing. The two made their way through the forest as the foliage got thicker the closer they got to the center. And the closer they got, the more the moon was pushing at Louis. Which was now making him uncomfortable. Not like it was very comfortable before, but this time it was like the moon was urging him, was practically forcing him into this direction and Louis was not fond of it. And who was he to listen to some bitch ass moonlight?

“Stop,” he commanded. “Stop, Liam.”

But Liam didn’t hear him, because he was tugged to the side by familiar hands.

“Oh, you’re fucking kidding me,” Louis cursed, broke a branch off of a tree, and swung it at that nasty faceless man. “I’m _really_ getting tired of you assholes.”

Though Louis had successfully knocked the man out cold, Liam was nowhere to be found. He still gripped onto the branch tightly, his hands twisting over it repeatedly, as he could hear multiple footsteps. He turned but saw nothing. He turned again but still came up with nothing. This was ridiculous. What was that sound?

When Louis turned once again, though, he was met with a multitude of nasty faceless men.

“Oh, fuck.”

A momentary pause occured before he roared and began swinging. The men came at him like mosquitoes but he impaled one with the branch and flicked it away before smacking one against the head with the branch. However, the more he got rid of, the more that kept coming. He saw Liam, blood streaking down his face slightly, but still fighting off like a champ.

“That’s my boy!” Louis called like a proud father.

Liam did not retaliate to the call but punched one of the men in the gut and then kicked him to make him fall. Louis did the same with four men surrounding him and smacked one so hard with the branch it hit a tree off into the distance and bones could be heard cracking. But Louis stared at the particular tree. His mind was suddenly shocked with images of a car, and a woman, and voices repeating a familiar phrase over and over again. He screamed and fell to his knees, using his hands to cover his ears in distress. 

Everything was drowned out by the scream. The mask was getting sweaty but he didn’t take it off completely, instead, he pushed it up slightly so he could let air in through his mouth. His eyes were squeezed shut out of pure fear. Hands found themselves to his where they were closing his ears and at first Louis thought it was Liam but when he could finally open his eyes he saw Nightlock before him. Liam was instantly forgotten. Nightlock was kneeling there, right there, reading Louis’ masked face, warm and comfortable, safe. Louis had no idea what he was doing. He had no idea what was going on with him, but there was humming in his mind, and then he was kissing Nightlock.

Louis had kissed people before. A number of them, actually. But none of them had been like kissing Nightlock.

His lips were soft, and then greedy. His hands were all over Louis, his neck, his back, pulling him up, grabbing his legs, wrapping them around his waist. His mouth opened and then his tongue was everywhere. Louis leaned back and let Nightlock explore and then _wow_ , there were hands grabbing his ass. Louis jumped down and used his strength to super-speed Nightlock against a tree and he was hungry for _more_ , running his hands along everything that was Nightlock and that made Nightlock _Nightlock_. Nightlock then super-sped so that now he was on top of Louis against the tree and their mouths couldn’t get enough of the other’s. Superhumans didn’t need to breathe for long, so they continued, stopping every so often to explore somewhere else until Liam was near tears.

“I’ve been trying to get you two to stop for the past, like, fucking fifteen minutes,” he cried. “If this is what it’s like being a sidekick every time then I’m definitely _out_.”

Nightlock expelled his mouth from Louis with a significant sound and sent a lopsided grin Liam’s way. “Well, if it isn’t Lord London and his pesky sidekick, Boy Superior.”

Liam huffed and looked at Louis. “I _told_ you I wouldn’t be overshadowed.” 

* * *

“Louis…”

The voice woke him up from his sleep. Louis tried to ignore it and pull the sheets over his head but it wouldn’t go away. When he rolled over and looked outside the window the moon was doing the same, casting the same light in the same direction with the same appeal. Louis rolled over again and stared at the ceiling. Finally, he just got up and got dressed.

He didn’t call Liam - or Boy Superior, for that matter. He put on his suit as quickly as always and left from his window. He sped his way through the streets, taking the right turns and the lefts and then he was there.

The tree looked the same. It was tall with a huge, thick trunk. Louis was afraid to touch it. He could still remember the faceless man hitting it and then disappearing along with his friends afterwards. And if he looked even closer, he could see the target.

“Louis.”

This time the voice was a command. An urgent one. The moon was shining brighter, focusing itself on the tree. Louis took a tentative step closer. It got impatient and pushed him in and all of a sudden it was two years ago.

Louis felt it. He could feel the car crushing his lungs, he could feel and see his hands twisting and reaching, bloodied, for someone, anything to save him. He could feel the hoarseness of his throat as he begged for _him_ . For _Zayn_.

“It’s a test,” the voices said. Now there were two, one in the present and the other in the cloudier, more sepia-tonied past. “If you want to live, you have to pass the test.”

He could see himself struggling. He could hear the heavy winds of the night and his voice crying, near death. “Anything, anything.”

His eyes squeezed shut. He grabbed onto the tree in the present but inside his mind he could still see the images of the past, now crystal clear. The images that had been presented to him, that he’d been tortured with, that had made him scream over and over again without a single ounce of hope left in his body. And then after all of that, he’d somehow lifted the car off of himself and gotten away.

“You didn’t pass the test,” she whispered. “You didn’t pass the test.” He opened his eyes and nearly collapsed when he could see the college girls in the parking lot, and then Lord London and Nightlock. He could see Niall in the clearing, and then Lord London and Nightlock. He could see Liam, being attacked, and then Lord London and Nightlock. Nightlock. Nightlock.

The tree felt like it was pulsing beneath his hands. He tried to hold himself steady. “You were supposed to be one of us, one of us,” she whispered into his ear. The sound was coming from the tree. The moon - _her_ \- whispered in his other ear. “We granted you the power to do our work, to take a life in exchange for yours.” The faceless men. He was supposed to become a faceless man. “You didn’t pass the test.”

There was another sound. Not a whisper, but a melody. As Louis followed it, the harmony pursued. Louis had heard this before, something he thought he’d forgotten. The closer he got to it, the louder it was. There was someone else there. Someone very familiar.

The two looked at each other. And then, without a word, they brought their hands to the earth beneath them and struck it.

Everything shook. The ground shook. The tree shook. Everything was shaking. The two stood still. When they looked again, the tree was gone. The moonlight was elsewhere, nowhere near as strong. What was left of the tree, of the target, was a mere trunk.

Louis quickly took off his mask. The other took off his own.

“Nightlock,” he breathed.

“Lord London,” said the other.

Zayn looked different without his glasses, but still like a hero. He gave Louis the smallest of smiles.

“So you’re-” Louis started.

“Yep.”

“And you weren’t there that night because-”

“Yep.”

Louis let out a breath of relief. He lifted his hands and could still feel a certain energy pulsing through his veins. “Well come here then, silly,” he said, and he pulled Zayn towards him with his telekinesis, and kissed his stupid-ass-fucking-face just like before.

* * *

_Zayn was pinned against a tree, breathing deeply. His hands felt his chest and when he looked down everything was covered in blood. The accident. Everything that had happened - where was he? Where was Louis?_

_“Help, somebody help!” he screamed._

_“If you want to live, you have to pass the test,” a small voice whispered._

_Zayn whimpered. Only one thing on his mind._

_Where was Louis?_

 

**Author's Note:**

> please comment!!! feedback is great!!! today is my birthday!!! its 12 am. hope you enjoyed!
> 
> explanation:  
> louis and zayn were close before but they were both in a car accident. a tree, with demonic spirits/powers, gave them both supernatural abilities to survive the accident in exchange for using these powers to kill but instead the two became heroes. louis believed that during this accident, zayn had run off and abandoned him and allowed for the spirit to plague him with evil thoughts, but it turns out that the same thing was happening to zayn who was also being tormented by the spirit in the tree. the end is a flashback to zayn's perspective of the accident.


End file.
